• YouTube: dougabel
  Videos uploaded by Doug Abel from Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary. Only two there now, related to Herbie the calf that escaped in Brooklyn around the holidays. Good stuff (though the news reporters are crazy annoying in that news reporter way.)
  (tags: video woodstock sanctuary)

From a koan called “No Attachment to Dust:”

“Some things, though right, were considered wrong for generations. Since the value of righteousness may be recognized after centuries, there is no need to crave an immediate appreciation.”

Something worth keeping in mind for activists of any kind.

• Seventh Generation recommends giving livestock as a holiday gift to relieve hunger
  Eric (at AAFL) looks at the issues surrounding supporting an organization like Heifer International.
  (tags: charity heiferinternational)
• Animal Rights vs. Livestock Donations: What’s the Right Thing To Do? | The Inspired Protagonist
  Heifer responds to Eric’s post.
  (tags: charity heiferinternational)
• My response to Heifer International
  And Eric’s response back to Heifer.
  (tags: charity heiferinternational)

I got into zines pretty late in the game.  I have a few from high school that friends put together, but didn’t really start tuning into the “zine scene” until well after I should have.  There’s something special about the personal, handmade nature of zines that’s hard to resist. And since Portland is both the “zine mecca” and “vegan mecca,” it should come as no surprise there are a load of good vegan zines and cookzines out there.

I’ve been meaning to write this post for a while, and while I was working on it, I came across this page of vegan zines. It’s far more complete than this post will be. Here, I’ll just cover a few that I’ve collected over the last couple of years.

Cookzines:

• Soy Not Oi!: The classic that everyone’s heard of. Lots of recipes, essays, and nifty little illustrations. I wonder what the Hippycore Krew is up to ten years later.
• We Need to Eat: Similar in style to “Soy Not Oi!,” “We Need to Eat” focuses on affordable, quick meals.
• The Frugal Vegan’s Harvest & Holiday Survival Guide: We use this one a lot, all year long. Some successes we’ve had include the super easy curried potato-broccoli soup, the buckwheat pancakes, and the veggie pot pie. Also has fun holiday gift ideas (why did I never think of packing the dry ingredients of cookie mixes with a card about how to finish the recipe?).
• Don’t Have a Cow: Recipes from varied sources and lots of well thought-out writing on veganism and animal rights. This is one of those zines that you’ll read over repeated sittings so that you can take it all in. I’m sorry to hear, though, that the author’s not a big fan of Herbivore. But he is a fan of the veg blog, so I guess that gets him some bonus points.

Two (well, three, technically) cookbooks that are compiled from several issues of vegan cookzines — full reviews are forthcoming:

• Hot Damn and Hell Yeah/The Dirty South Cookbook: Two cookbooks in one here with lots of great stuff for people who want a little grease with their food. And for only $5? C’mon now, it’s a given. (You can hear my audio review of this on episode 41 of Vegan Freak Radio.)
• Please Don’t Feed the Bears: Every recipe has an obscure metal recommendation along with it. I just got this one and we’re still working our way through it, but holy seitan the chocolate chip cookies are amazing.

Some non-cooking zines from veg*ns (this is a very incomplete list since it seems lots of zinesters are vegans, so I’ve just included ones from veg blog regulars and folks I’ve talked with):

• Geraniums and Bacon, et al.: Lots of varied goodness from a veg blog regular.
• Invincible Summer: An Anthology: This anthology of Nicole J. Georges’ stuff is a great read and includes some gems about her time interning at Farm Sanctuary California.
• sisu: A thought-provoking zine by long-time veg blog reader johanna. #3 turned me on to a kind of fun book titled The City, Not Long After that I would have never stumbled across otherwise.

Any to add?

• 40-year-old accused of assault by meat hook
  A worker at “Premium Protein Products” attacked a man with a meat hook. It’s the feel-good story of the holiday season!
  (tags: news violence meat)

Yesterday, I had a chance to sample Sheese, a vegan cheese imported from Scotland (there known as Scheese). For all vegans that have been waiting for a cheese product that you can actually eat plain… it’s here.

Now, I haven’t tried Cheezly yet (any UK folks that would be willing to ship me some and get reimbursed?), but Sheese is far and away the best soy cheese I’ve had yet. My wife tried it, too. Now, she’s content with the standard Veganrella/Vegan Gourmet/Uncheese Cookbook options but is also fiending for a vegan cheese that is truly like the real thing. When I handed her a piece of Sheese and she bit into it, her eyes opened wide and she said, “Wow. There’s no difference in taste or texture between this and real cheese.” Clearly, this stuff is amazing.

My local health food store is likely going to start carrying it soon. They couldn’t say how much it would cost just yet, though I know Food Fight had it for $9.75. That’s pretty damn expensive, but hopefully this new import deal Sheese has with Black Duck Imports will make it more affordable.

Available flavors: Blue, Cheddar & Chives (the one I tried), Cheshire, Edam, Gouda, Hickory Smoked Cheddar, Medium Cheddar, Mozzarella, and Strong Cheddar.

(Thanks to Steve at Healthy By Nature for letting me sample this good stuff.)

• vegan yum: “keep in fridge for better crunchy.”
  A fun, old-school vegan site.
  (tags: vegan site)

• The Cyberactivist
  Virgil Butler was found dead on Friday. This is so sad.
  (tags: activist death rip virgilbutler)
• Animal Writings: In Honor and Memory of Virgil Butler
  Gary’s tribute.
  (tags: tribute death virgilbutler rip)

• TOFU DOG CHALLENGE!
  And here I thought tofu dogs were still pretty gross tasting.
  (tags: soy tofu food)

I always love trying out new vegan products and in some cases I consider it my duty. After all, how can I report about strawberry-flavored Ricemellow Creme if I don’t buy some and eat it with everything?

So, here’s my lastest rundown of vegan products I’m loving right now:

• Lamas Spa Sensation Hand Cream: When winter time rolls around, my hands are crazy dry. Everything I’ve tried helps a little, but my skin still cracks and my hands look like those of a 90-year-old man. This stuff, though, seems to do a better job than anything else I’ve tried. Plus, it smells excellent and isn’t oily.
• Cindy’s Kitchen Creamy Miso Dressing: I’ve been on a creamy dressing kick as of late, and this is definitely one of my new favorites. Even though it says “miso” in the name, it doesn’t really have any miso taste. It’s just a rich, delcious, creamy dressing that tastes great on salads, as a dip, or as a toothpaste. OK, maybe not that last one, but only because I haven’t tried it yet.
• Nasoya Tangy Blue Dressing: A vegan blue cheese? Believe that! Great stuff. (There’s also a dead simple recipe for a blue cheese dressing in the Michael Franti issue of Herbivore. It’s just as good and maybe a little better because you can make it as chunky as you’d like.)
• Peppermint Chocolate Vitasoy: Bloody hell this stuff is amazing. I concur with the folks over at the PPK forums, though… this stuff should be fortified, then I could feel better about drinking this stuff at every meal.

What’s tickling your fancy this holiday season?